Israeli jets hit military targets in Syria on Sunday in response to rockets launched towards Israel-occupied Golan Heights overnight.
Syrian state media reported explosions near the capital Damascus as Israel's military said its forces were responding to six rockets fired overnight from Syria.
The military said artillery and drone strikes hit the rocket launchers and were followed by air strikes against a Syrian army compound, military radar systems and artillery posts.
The Israeli military “sees the State of Syria responsible for all activities occurring within its territory and will not allow any attempts to violate Israeli sovereignty”, the Israeli military said in a statement.
The Syrian Defence Ministry said its air defences had responded to the Israeli attacks and intercepted some Israeli missiles. It said the strikes caused material damage but no casualties.
Sirens had sounded earlier near towns in the Golan Heights after rockets were launched from Syrian territory, but no damage or casualties were reported.
Only three of the rockets crossed into Israeli-controlled territory, with two falling on open ground and a third intercepted by air defence systems, the military said.
Israel seized the Golan Heights in the 1967 Middle East war and annexed the 1,200-square-kilometre territory in 1981, a move not recognised by most of the international community.
Lebanon-based Al Mayadeen TV said the rocket fire was claimed by Al Quds Brigades, the armed wing of the Iran-backed Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement.
On Thursday, more than 30 rockets were fired towards Israel from southern Lebanon, drawing cross-border counterstrikes from Israel on sites linked to the Islamist movement Hamas in Lebanon and Gaza.
The cross-border exchanges came amid sharply increased tensions between Israel and Palestinian groups following Israeli police raids on Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, which caused outrage across the Arab world.
Israel said the operations were intended to dislodge groups of what police called extremists that had barricaded themselves into the mosque armed with firecrackers and stones.
But the raids, during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, drew a furious reaction and concern even among Israel's US allies, with mobile phone footage from inside the mosque showing police beating worshippers.
The site in Jerusalem's Old City, holy to Muslims and Jews, has been a long-standing flashpoint, notably over the issue of Jewish visitors defying a ban on non-Muslim prayer in the mosque compound.
Clashes there in 2021 helped set off a 10-day war between Israel and Hamas.
Despite fears of further violence around the mosque on Saturday, there were no reports of serious disturbances overnight.
In a separate incident, a Palestinian man was shot dead by Israeli forces during a confrontation in the occupied West Bank, Israel's military and the Palestinian health ministry said.
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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China
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UAE
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Japan
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Norway
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Canada
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Singapore
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Australia
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Saudi Arabia
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South Korea
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Last-16
France 4
Griezmann (13' pen), Pavard (57'), Mbappe (64', 68')
Argentina 3
Di Maria (41'), Mercado (48'), Aguero (90 3')
Nepotism is the name of the game
Salman Khan’s father, Salim Khan, is one of Bollywood’s most legendary screenwriters. Through his partnership with co-writer Javed Akhtar, Salim is credited with having paved the path for the Indian film industry’s blockbuster format in the 1970s. Something his son now rules the roost of. More importantly, the Salim-Javed duo also created the persona of the “angry young man” for Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan in the 1970s, reflecting the angst of the average Indian. In choosing to be the ordinary man’s “hero” as opposed to a thespian in new Bollywood, Salman Khan remains tightly linked to his father’s oeuvre. Thanks dad.
The Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index
The Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index
Mazen Abukhater, principal and actuary at global consultancy Mercer, Middle East, says the company’s Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index - which benchmarks 34 pension schemes across the globe to assess their adequacy, sustainability and integrity - included Saudi Arabia for the first time this year to offer a glimpse into the region.
The index highlighted fundamental issues for all 34 countries, such as a rapid ageing population and a low growth / low interest environment putting pressure on expected returns. It also highlighted the increasing popularity around the world of defined contribution schemes.
“Average life expectancy has been increasing by about three years every 10 years. Someone born in 1947 is expected to live until 85 whereas someone born in 2007 is expected to live to 103,” Mr Abukhater told the Mena Pensions Conference.
“Are our systems equipped to handle these kind of life expectancies in the future? If so many people retire at 60, they are going to be in retirement for 43 years – so we need to adapt our retirement age to our changing life expectancy.”
Saudi Arabia came in the middle of Mercer’s ranking with a score of 58.9. The report said the country's index could be raised by improving the minimum level of support for the poorest aged individuals and increasing the labour force participation rate at older ages as life expectancies rise.
Mr Abukhater said the challenges of an ageing population, increased life expectancy and some individuals relying solely on their government for financial support in their retirement years will put the system under strain.
“To relieve that pressure, governments need to consider whether it is time to switch to a defined contribution scheme so that individuals can supplement their own future with the help of government support,” he said.
Match info
Australia 580
Pakistan 240 and 335
Result: Australia win by an innings and five runs
Russia's Muslim Heartlands
Dominic Rubin, Oxford
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
At Eternity’s Gate
Director: Julian Schnabel
Starring: Willem Dafoe, Oscar Isaacs, Mads Mikkelsen
Three stars
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
The%20Caine%20Mutiny%20Court-Martial%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EWilliam%20Friedkin%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EKiefer%20Sutherland%2C%20Jason%20Clarke%2C%20Jake%20Lacy%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E3%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The Africa Institute 101
Housed on the same site as the original Africa Hall, which first hosted an Arab-African Symposium in 1976, the newly renovated building will be home to a think tank and postgraduate studies hub (it will offer master’s and PhD programmes). The centre will focus on both the historical and contemporary links between Africa and the Gulf, and will serve as a meeting place for conferences, symposia, lectures, film screenings, plays, musical performances and more. In fact, today it is hosting a symposium – 5-plus-1: Rethinking Abstraction that will look at the six decades of Frank Bowling’s career, as well as those of his contemporaries that invested social, cultural and personal meaning into abstraction.
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
